Page 39 of Wicked Knight 2

“Leeches.” Papa shook his head. “We’ll deal with them later.”

“Right. For now, we have to clean house.” I turned to Boris. “So what was the plan? Kill me, then put you in my place? Then what? You slit Papa’s throat once you gained his trust. Did you really think the men would follow you?”

When Boris stared at me in surprise, I laughed. “Jesus fuck. That was it? That was the fucking plan?” I reached for my gun and aimed it at his head. “Can I shoot him now?”

“Wait.” Boris finally realized he had no leverage. That at this point, all he could negotiate was a merciful death. “I’ll give you their names.”

An hour later, I followed Tore to the compound gates where Boris, Yaro, and the other three traitors faced the brick wall.

Tore braced his hands on his hips. “I found the assholes drunk in their bedrooms. They didn’t even think to get the hell out of here. Fucking idiots.” He shoved one of them back in line. “Get on your knees. All of you,” he yelled.

“Tore,” Papa called out. When he joined us, he pointed at me. “Let my son handle this one. This is his kill.”

“Sure.” Tore stepped aside to make room for me.

Another kill for the Brotherhood. The bang of my gun echoed in my head and brought back memories from my usual nightmare. Except, this time I saw something different. I wasn’t the one facing the barrel of the gun. I was the one holding it. I squeezed the trigger again. In the dark of the night, all I could see were the gory images from my dreams.

When it was over, I handed my weapon to Tore and stormed back toward the house. Why was it always that same dream? The memory of it lingered in my mind until I reached my bedroom door. I glared at it, then glanced down at my bloody knuckles. Fuck. Slowly, I pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Donata jerked to her feet, but then relaxed when she saw me. To my surprise, she rushed toward me and threw her arms around my neck. “Tore left hours ago. I thought.”

“I’m fine. I had a job for him. I didn’t trust anyone else with it.”

“I was here.” Ivan came out of the bathroom. “They were perfectly fine.”

“Is he gone?” Alexei peered up at me. “Is it over?”

“It’s over.” I smiled at him. “Why don’t you go to your room and get some sleep? Boris and his guys won’t bother you anymore.”

“Yeah, okay.” He made to go, but then, turned around and wrapped his arms around my waist. “I’m glad you’re back.”

“Me too.” I chuckled.

“I’m going too.” Ivan winked at Donata, then followed Alexei out the door.

“You’re hurt.” Donata held my hand in hers.

“Let me take a shower first. Then you can doctor me all you want.” I sauntered toward the en-suite.

The stench of gunpowder and blood clung to my suit and my skin. It was a reminder of how fragile our lives and safety were. I ran the water and stepped under it. As soon as I relaxed, more of my dreams flooded my mind. I didn’t fight the random images. I was used to them by now. They always came after a fight or a night like tonight.

“Maxim?” Donata called from the door. “Are you okay?”

“Just a minute.” I rinsed off the last of the body wash, shut off the water, and grabbed a towel off the rack.

In the closet, I found a pair of pajama pants. The last time I spent the night with Donata, I had slept naked only to get a rise out of her. Tonight was different. I needed to keep myself in check so we could talk about our future together.

As soon as I left the bathroom, my gaze settled on all the medical supplies on the bedside table. “Is this really necessary?”

“Yes.” She gestured for me to sit.

With a sigh of resignation, I sauntered toward the bed and lowered myself on to it. Donata took my hand in hers to examine it. It was swollen with a few cuts and bruises. Shaking her head, she grabbed some ointment and applied it gently.

“No stitches this time.” Her gaze cut to mine for a brief moment. “Please no more fights for at least two weeks. Doctor’s orders.”

“Yes, doctor.” I regarded her profile.

Her soft cheek turned a pretty pink under my scrutiny. It reminded me that a few hours ago, Donata had agreed to come upstairs with me. I had been in a rush all night to get her back in my bed. But now that we were here, I wanted to take my time with her. She was so beautiful. I could sit here and watch her tend to my wounds all night. I lifted my left hand and brushed the side of her arm. She inhaled and held her breath.

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